First Century

[tulip]

Thanks, Indy! I can do that; in fact, it'll work better with my schedule. I have my calendar out and am marking up the weeks to come...I do drink more than every 15 minutes anyways on long rides. On shorter rides, for some reason, I forget to drink, though.

I'll report back.

[PscyclePath]

One good trick is to break it into sections... don't think of yourself as riding 100 miles in one lick, but do four 25-mile legs, or five 20-milers, real close together with a break at the rest stops in between. Pacing yourself is important. If you go out a little slower than you intended, you can always pick up the pace toward the end of the ride depending on how you feel.

You can generally ride about twice your longest distance on guts and determination alone. You'll be sore afterwards, but you'll have that hundred on the record books to ease your pain ;-)

Use group dynamics... find a group of friends, or make allies out on the road who are riding the same pace as you, and work together. Where there's a wheel to follow, there's a way! Remember that when drafting, you're saving almost a third of your energy, so either bring friends or make friends on the road, and suck wheel shamelessly. You'll make those friends a lot more easily if you're willing to share the work. Swap short pulls, and all of you will find it easier.

Time in the saddle is the best preparation, but if your training program isn't quite what we planned, we can always get by with a little help from friends. Find friends, and ride together. The miles will fly by, and you'll have a lot more fun that way.

Tom

[tulip]

I'll be riding with a seasoned century-rider, who is also a very good friend. I'm not intimidated by it, since I'm quite comfortable on my bike and I've done long rides before, including tours of several weeks.

Thanks for all the advice. I do need to get on my bike more than I have been. One drawback of working from home is that I no longer have my hour commute twice a day (of course, I COULD just go out for a bike ride, but something about a commute made it easier to get out).

[anneimall]

It's the Solvang century ... could be anywhere from 40-80 degrees in the beginning of March. 5,000 total elevation gain. My longest ride to date is about 50 miles, but just about every ride I've done (I started road riding in July) has been 40-50 miles. I haven't been able to ride outside all winter, but have a trainer, although it's not getting the use I was hoping (although I do ski a lot). I live at 8,000 feet, so I'm hoping the high altitude training will help get me through. I'm planning on getting outside for a 75 mile or so ride in a week. And, I just got the spinervals tough love dvd in the mail yesterday, although when I'm home alone my son likes to play with my bike when I'm riding it so its been tough making the time.

Tom, thanks for the words of encouragement ... I'm hoping that I can just gut through this and see how far I get. I'll be riding alone, but I will try to take your advice and make some friends.

[Starfish]

And, know yourself. I did my first century alone, and did not join groups. Same with my first real climbing century last summer. And, this summer for my hardest ride yet, I will also go alone. I like to do hard efforts alone so that I can really tune into how I feel and not get swept along with anyone else's pace or psychology, and not feel that I need to take care of anyone else, either. Listen to your own intuition about yourself and how you operate best.

[anneimall]

Thanks Starfish. That is good advice and I will follow it.

[maillotpois]

That is a great first century - relatively flat and well supported. You will have a great time!